


with you, anything is pawsible

by zabiume



Category: Bleach
Genre: Accidental Dating, Bad Puns, Cuddling & Snuggling, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Ichigo and Orihime have one brain cell and it's with the cat, Pet Parents, Pets, Pining, Tumblr Prompt, accidental pet acquisition, bordering !crackfic territory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-18
Updated: 2021-03-18
Packaged: 2021-03-27 06:48:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30118794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zabiume/pseuds/zabiume
Summary: Rukia [middle finger emoji]: did you get a cat???????????Rukia [middle finger emoji]: karin sent me a picture so don’t even think about lying to meRukia [middle finger emoji]: are you and inoue CO-PARENTING a cat?????Rukia [middle finger emoji]: hello?????Ichigo[boot][bug]: jwf;lksRukia [middle finger emoji]: ….Ichigo [boot][bug]: typoRukia [middle finger emoji]: the cat did that, didnt it?
Relationships: Inoue Orihime/Kurosaki Ichigo
Comments: 3
Kudos: 34





	with you, anything is pawsible

**Author's Note:**

> **scrapbread** asked: 
> 
> You keep mentioning Ichigo and Orihime's cat and since you're taking prompts, can I pleaaaaase ask for an origin story of pet parents!ih????
> 
> So, I delivered. This was sixteen pages on Google Docs and not one of them was proof-read but all of them were written with a lot of love. I know it says fluff on the tin, and a part of that is IchiOri fluff, sure, but it is very much also Reluctant Cat Dad Ichigo fluff. Enjoy.

By the time May was slowly rolling into June, it was pretty clear that the number of days Ichigo got to hang out with his friends had drastically reduced. He’d pretty much convinced himself all summer that if he hung out with them enough during their last holiday together, he’d eventually tire out and wouldn’t miss them once uni picked up steam. 

The fallacy in _that_ logic had been bad, to say the least. If anything, he missed them _more_ , now that he’d jumped from spending all summer with them to only seeing them on a snatched Friday or two or a rare weekend when everyone was in the same place, at the same time. With Uryu off at med school and Chad splitting his time between classes and work, it seemed like the band officially had no reasons to get back together any time soon-- unless there was another Soul Society brouhaha or something of the sort. It was almost ironic that it would take nothing short of the world ending for him to meet his friends, both of this world and otherwise. 

Which was why he’d probably agreed to it, at the time. The cat, that is. 

He would admit to absolutely no one that a small part of him -- okay, maybe not so small -- had been relieved when Orihime had decided to wait and save up until the September semester began to start applying to colleges, unlike everyone else (him included) who had jumped the gun in April. It was a good decision, financially, but it also meant he’d have a solid excuse to invite her over and hang out while everyone else was busy. He knew she was upset about the others getting a headstart, so all the reasons were laid out for him, giving him the perfect excuse to fuss over her well-being as much as she’d allow him and send her home with a smile on her face. 

Or so he’d thought. The part of him that was excited had completely overlooked the fact that no school meant more shifts at the bakery, and that Orihime hadn’t dropped by _once_ since graduation, knee-deep in work. The occasional cute pictures of hot cross buns and dusting sugar hadn’t satiated his craving at all. For bread, obviously, and not for seeing her -- he had a _reputation_.

Anyway, it all changed on Sunday, when he’d been roused from bed by Yuzu, who said someone was at the door for him and that it was important. Grumbling about her secrecy -- _“why can’t you just tell me who it is, damn it!”_ \-- he’d yanked the door open, only to come face to face with Orihime, beaming with a flustered smile and…

...holding a very chubby, downright grumpy cat in her arms. 

__________

  
  


The cat was scowling at him. Its light orange fur glowed under the scant centimetres of sunlight that spread over its pudgy face in a latticework of patches. Its hair was so wild, it seemed like the kind of cat that always looked like it had serious bedhead. Tucked between Orihime’s arm and lap, it looked brattishly snug.

“I found him digging through the discards in the back alley of ABCookies,” she explained, lovingly rubbing his chin with the back of her hand. “He was so alone and vulnerable, fending for himself out there, so I decided to contact a rescue agency to help him.” 

Somehow, Ichigo doubted that, considering the size of that thing. He had no idea what an actual cat was supposed to weigh, but he supposed the beast in Orihime’s arms would break the scales. For all they knew, the ginger-haired brat could have been living lavishly off the dairy-infused discards at ABCs. 

“He’s huge,” Ichigo pointed out bluntly. 

Orihime frowned, covering his ears like it would offend him. “You’ll hurt his feelings,” she accused, even though the cat itself looked absolutely unbothered by anything feelings-related, lazily scanning the surroundings of Ichigo’s room with its gigantic brown eyes. 

Ichigo’s eyes softened when he saw Orihime cradling his head in the crook of her elbow. It was obvious enough that loneliness had been at the root of whatever spurned her on to take in the cat, even though he was slightly irritated at the fact. If it was loneliness, all she had to do was pick up the phone and call _him_. She would never feel comfortable ‘imposing’ on his time like that, though, so he supposed it was all too natural for her to resort to this. He watched her let the cat go, allowing him to prod his nose and paw at the leg of Ichigo’s bed curiously. 

“Are you keeping him?” he asked, with an aggravated sigh, leaning his elbows on his thighs. 

Orihime shook her head, her hands retreating to nurse the cup of cocoa he’d made for her. “I’m fostering him for the agency until they can find someone to adopt him,” she explained softly. “But there’s a bit of a problem, and I--” she bit her lip, eyes searching his with uncertainty, “I might need your help with something.” 

“Anything,” he replied, almost automatically, wondering how long she’d been keeping this problem to herself before finally deciding to come over and ‘bother’ him with it. 

“I might need you to help me watch him when I have shifts at the bakery,” she blurted, watching his face carefully for any signs of irritation. He was careful not to show any. “I wanted to house-train him with a pet camera, but my landlord wasn’t too comfortable with that idea and well--,” she gestured to where the cat was circling her rather protectively, “-- he’s a bit anxious about being left alone, so I asked Tatsuki-chan’s mom and she said no. I tried asking Sado-kun, too but his apartment has a ‘no pets’ rule and Ishida-kun has allergies so…” She peeked up at him almost guiltily. “It had to come down to this. I know you have a week off for your exams right now, and I’d hate to ask but I couldn’t think of anything else, I’m sorry.” 

Ichigo bit back the knee-jerk throb of annoyance at being her last choice -- she’d asked _Uryu_ before him -- and chose instead to shrug. “I don’t mind,” he said, a small smile curving at his lips when she let out a relieved sigh. Then, he frowned, rubbing the back of his neck. “Will he be okay with me, though? I’m no good with pets, Inoue.” 

“He’s good with people!” she replied earnestly, reaching out to haul him in her arms and snuggle her face into his furry neck. He purred. She sneezed. When she looked up at Ichigo, her nose was sheepishly -- _adorably_ \-- red and he felt his chest seize. 

“I’ll do it,” he said, resigning himself to the fact that this was happening and he was powerless to stop it. Oh well. At least his sisters would like the idea of a temporary pet. When Orihime’s face brightened, he felt warmth spread all over his chest, down to his fingertips, so much so that he had to add, “It’ll cost you, though,”-- just to be trite. 

Orihime grinned, reaching out for the packet of melon bread she’d carefully wrapped inside her satchel. “I came prepared.” 

“You didn’t,” he replied in genuine shock, already reaching out to snatch the parcel away from her and tear it open. She laughed fondly, cupping her own face in her hands as she watched him go at it. He flushed under her scrutiny and focused his energy on batting the cat away as it crept up to examine his bread. 

Later, as he walked Orihime and her cat back to his front door, she texted him her work schedules and her intervention plans and what days she would be coming over to drop him off and pick him back up. “Thank you so much, Kurosaki-kun,” she beamed, as her phone clicked with the telltale chirp of her message going through. “I owe you so much.” 

“No worries.” He waved dismissively, before nodding at the cat. “What did you name him, anyway?” 

“Kentaurus Rigil the Third,” she declared proudly, even as a bead of sweat dropped down Ichigo's forehead. She giggled, satisfied that the build-up to her punchline had yielded its intended effect. “Kennie, for short.” 

He shook his head, letting out an exaggerated sigh. Somehow, he felt like he signed up for more than he’d bargained for. 

  
  


__________

  
  


His worst fears were confirmed come Monday, when Orihime dropped ‘Kennie’ off at the clinic, with his toys, his food, and his litter box. “Be good until Mommy comes home, okay?” she’d whispered and given him a loud smack of a kiss on the head before thanking Ichigo and his family profusely once again. He knew she was nervous, so he’d shoved her out with the absolute confidence that he wouldn’t fuck this up. It wasn’t until he’d actually re-entered his house that he realized just who else he’d have to deal with. 

If Yuzu’s fussing wasn’t enough, his dad had gone certifiably nuts at the prospect of a new cat in the house. 

“Masaki!” he roared, swinging Kennie up high Simba-style to flaunt him to Masaki’s poster. “Look at my new son, isn’t he just _adorable_?” 

“Put him _down_ , old man!” Ichigo yelled, shaking a fist at his father as he tried to make a lunge for it and take the cat back. He ended up hitting his hip to the sharp edge of the dinner table instead, eyes watering with pain as Kennie yowled somewhere in the background. 

“You know, I get moping around because she isn't paying attention to you anymore, but this is a bit much,” Karin muttered, crossing her arms in amusement. “I mean-- a cat?”

Ichigo scowled, turning-beet red. “Shut up!” 

Something crashed in the distance. 

“Oh, Daddy, can I go next?” Yuzu squealed, immediately after. 

Orihime would never forgive him for this, he thought, pushing himself off the surface so he could go save the damn cat from his dad. “I said put him down!” 

Before he could intervene, Kennie swiped his chubby paw square across Isshin’s face haughtily, dragging jagged lines of red across his face. Isshin howled in dramatic pain, almost dropping him if it hadn’t been for Yuzu quickly jumping in and stopping that from happening. For a second, no one moved, shocked. 

“Serves you right!” Ichigo snapped, gently taking Kennie back from Yuzu and tucking him under his arm. “I’ll be upstairs all day and if you even _breathe_ near him again, there will be consequences!” 

He rushed up the stairs, taking two at a time, and didn’t stop until he slammed the door loud enough for the sound to reverberate around the entire house. Satisfied, he let out a sigh and dropped Kennie to the floor. 

“Alright,” he said, hands on his hips as he gestured around the room, where he and Orihime had painstakingly set up a playpen for him. “I’m going to do my reading now.” He pointed a finger sternly. “Behave. Take a nap or something. I’ll let you out after lunch, and then you can come back and have a go in your litter box.” Or at least that was the plan, according to the little chore chart Orihime had drawn for him. Kennie blinked. 

Ichigo, oblivious to him, dropped down on his study chair with a sigh and dragged the chart for a second consultation. There were tiny doodles of Ichigo and Kennie -- both in capes -- drawn in on the margins, the rest of the page left for the timings and tasks and what not. He set a few alarms on his phone for feeding and poop-time, then left his phone by the edge of the desk and picked his _Jane Austen_ up. 

  
  


__________

  
  


“You knock.” 

“No, you do it. I don’t want him to yell at me again.”

“God, you’re such a baby, Yuzu, grow up.” 

“ _STOP THAT!_ What are you _doing?!_ ” 

Yuzu and Karin caught each others’ eyes, alarmed, then stumbled over each other to push the door to Ichigo’s bedroom open. The muffled noises behind the door cleared up as it swung inwards, leading to an objectively hilarious sight. Ichigo was standing, several bedside items clutched in one hand as he held the other out like he was bracing himself.

Kennie, perched on his desk, regarded him for all but one second before pushing a paperweight off his desk with an authoritatively fluffy paw. Ichigo swooped in to catch it, then growled, “Stop that.” He set all the previous knockdown attempts on his bed, and then glared at Kennie. “What do you want?”

Kennie’s eyes flicked away, a small tongue coming out to lap at his own paw in disinterest. 

“I think he wants to play with you, onii-chan,” Yuzu remarked, while Karin smirked behind her hand. 

“Play with me?” Ichigo echoed, scratching his ear. “He’s got an entire play pen, what does he need _me_ for?”

“Please never have kids,” Karin muttered under her breath, ignoring Ichigo’s sharp glare in her direction. Kennie hopped off the bed and twirled his tail around Ichigo’s leg, curling up to his warmth. Ichigo drew his gaze away from Karin and absently set one hand down to pet his head. 

“It says here on CoolKittyGames that you have to engage in feline play or your kitten will get bored of his toys,” Yuzu read out loud, glancing back and forth between Kennie and her phone. “He _does_ want you to play with him, then, how cute!” 

Ichigo was about to grumble something back when his own phone buzzed in his pocket. Flicking it open, he watched Orihime’s name float across the screen. “Watch him for a moment, I gotta take this.” He wordlessly shucked Kennie off his leg and booked it out of the room, closing the door behind him. “Hey.”

“ _Hi, baby. Are you being a good boy for me?_ ” Orihime’s voice trilled, sounding cheerful and upbeat as usual, if not a little hushed to avoid being overheard. She must have been on her break, then. He liked it, the way her quiet voice yanked goosebumps up his neck against his will. 

“Uh--yeah,” he replied, rubbing his eye, before belatedly realising she must have been asking about _the cat_. “He’s--he’s fine.” His face flamed bright red as he cleared his throat several times. “Do you want me to put him on?” 

Orihime laughed quietly. “ _Not unless he can talk to me himself, no, I’ll just have to take your word for it_ ,” she said, and he huffed out a breath of a laugh himself, relaxing a little. “ _How is he? He’s not giving you any trouble, is he?_ ” 

“No,” Ichigo replied, leaning against the door. “So far, so good.” 

“ _Are you sure?_ ” Orihime asked, and he could just picture her, worriedly clutching her neck. “ _Has he pooped on you so far?_ ”

“Relax,” Ichigo said, nudging his ear against the doorway to listen to any concerning sounds. “It’ll be fine. He mostly just walks around the room and knocks stuff off the table.” 

“ _He_ likes _you_ ,” Orihime said, sounding delighted. “ _Usually, he’s a bit anxious about getting used to a new environment. It took me a while to get him comfortable enough around me and explore his surroundings, but you’re making fast progress!”_

“If you say so,” he mumbled back, hearing a few scritches and scratches at the door. “I’m gonna let him out after lunch, like we discussed. Is that okay?” 

“ _Yes! I’ll come pick him up at 4_.” 

“Cool.” 

They exchanged goodbyes, and Ichigo went back inside his room, feeling better about his prospects at this whole cat thing. When he arrived however, Kennie trotted up to him and insistently rubbed against his side, almost accusingly. “What’s up?” Ichigo asked, kneeling down to rub his head with two fingers. This immediately seemed to appease him and he nudged Ichigo’s entire hand for more. “You’re a bit of an attention-seeker, aren’t you?” 

“He didn’t want to play with us at all, onii-chan,” Yuzu complained, crossing her arms. “He just spent the whole time pacing around your door, waiting for you to come back.” 

“He likes you,” Karin said, sounding too surprised for Ichigo’s liking. 

“It’s alright, he’s just getting used to everything,” he said, lifting Kennie with one hand, beckoning his sisters with the other. “C’mere, I’ll show you how to pet him.” 

They eagerly kicked themselves off from where they were sitting and joined him on the floor. 

“Be gentle, okay?” Ichigo started, poising Kennie on his lap to face his sisters. “Don’t be afraid of him, he’s just got a mean face, that’s all. He’s actually a total softie on the inside, see?” Ichigo bopped his nose, earning a small hiss. 

“Like you,” Yuzu said happily, cautiously allowing Ichigo to take her hand and show her how to pet him. 

“Maybe,” Ichigo acquiesced, watching his sister and -- unbeknownst to him -- the cat, fondly. 

In the meanwhile, Karin had snuck out her phone from her pocket and taken a few discrete pictures. If there was anything she knew about her brother, it was that any association like this would absolutely _besmirch_ his reputation. Fodder for the blackmail box didn't sound too bad at the moment, and she could always lord it over him when he’d eventually deny that he didn’t care for the cat at all, like every stoic dude in a family-feels movie. 

“Oi, Karin, what are you doing over there?”

She quickly hid the phone again. 

__________

  
  
  


Several hours after Orihime had come back to take him home, Ichigo had gotten down to do his homework again. While Kennie had spent most of the day lounging on his window sill and taking a siesta, there were times when Ichigo worried about him. Orihime had told him to let Kennie outside for a bit if he seemed comfortable venturing out on his own, but Ichigo had panicked and ended up following him at a safe distance. What if he’d gotten lost? Or hit by a car? Or kidnapped? _Catnapped?_

When he’d sent her his paragraph-long rant about his worries, she thankfully didn’t make fun of him, just encouraged him to do whatever his instinct told him to and that she trusted him. That had given him enough courage to follow Kennie on his short walk and escort him back home safely, enjoying the little burst of nature while he was at it. He’d never been big on pets as a kid, but Kennie wasn’t that bad of a cat and he didn’t mind looking after him if Orihime could work those extra shifts in peace. 

He wrapped up coursework for the night and sank into bed with a sigh, just as his phone dinged. When he turned it over, he noticed it was a text from Orihime, attached with a picture. He clicked it open. 

‘ _Baby Kentaurus taking a nap <333’ _ it read, with a picture of a dozing Kennie on the curve of her knee. The next one rolled in a few moments after. _He misses his buddy._

He smiled, despite himself, tapping back a reply. _Stinky boy. Fat._

_Don’t be mean!!!!!!!!!,_ she replied, but he knew she must have known he was teasing. She knew him well enough, after all. He clicked open the picture of Kennie, zoomed in on his stubby nose, stared at it wistfully, then switched off his phone and went to bed. 

__________

The days passed. 

“No, no, no, no, _no!_ ” 

Kennie blinked. 

“Get off my bed!” Ichigo roared, pointing accusingly at him. 

Kennie flopped onto his back and dared Ichigo with his caramel-soft eyes to do something about it. 

Ichigo sighed, hesitated for an entire moment’s worth, then dropped down beside him in resignation. “Spoiled brat.” 

  
  


__________

  
  
  


_Rukia [middle finger emoji]: did you get a cat???????????_

_Rukia [middle finger emoji]: karin sent me a picture so don’t even think about lying to me_

_Rukia [middle finger emoji]: are you and inoue CO-PARENTING a cat?????_

_Rukia [middle finger emoji]: hello?????_

_Ichigo[boot][bug]: jwf;lks_

_Rukia [middle finger emoji]: …._

_Ichigo [boot][bug]: typo_

_Rukia [middle finger emoji]: the cat did that, didnt it?_

__________

  
  
  


“I had a dream he was kidnapped, Kurosaki-kun,” she confessed to him one evening, when she arrived to pick him up. Her face scrunched cutely in afterthought. “Catnapped?”

Ichigo smiled and averted his gaze, shoving his hands in his pockets as he leaned against the doorway. “We’d bring him back.” 

“Too right! We couldn’t possibly afford a ransom with how much the wage rate is at,” she said, bouncing him in her arms and making a squishy face at him, “Could we, Kentaurus?” She made kissy faces at him while he blinked blankly. Ichigo’s face softened. He wished he could take a picture without being obvious about it, and then make it his lockscreen like some kind of boomer dad. 

Karin craned her head around the kitchen table so her voice would reach the doorway, “I thought you said his name was Kennie!” 

Ichigo’s smile morphed into a scowl as he yelled back, “I thought you said you were doing homework! Quit eavesdropping on our conversations!” 

“Not like I’d want to anyway! All you two do is talk about your stupid cat.”

Ichigo and Orihime gasped, the latter covering Kennie’s ears.

“Don’t call him that!” they yelled in unison. 

  
  


__________

  
  
  


Kennie crouched over, but refused to move. 

“You know I hate to call you when you’re at work,” Ichigo said, with a sigh, rubbing his eyebrows while Karin and Yuzu tried to coax Kennie into taking a shit, “but he isn’t pooping.” 

“ _Have you guys tried giving him his space? He doesn’t like to be crowded when he takes a dump.”_

“No, why would anyone?” Ichigo retorted, because that was reasonable and he personally would have been ticked off if Yuzu and Karin _and_ his dad tried watching _him_ take a shit. “I’ll try that--” he beckoned his sisters, “--come on let’s go.” 

“ _Wait, Kurosaki-kun_.” 

Ichigo stalled. “Hmm?”

“ _I think_ you _should stay with him, just in case_.” 

He let out a long, low groan. “You’re kidding me, right?” 

“ _You’re his person_ ,” she explained sweetly, like that wasn’t the grossest and cutest thing he’d heard ever. “ _He’ll want you to be there when he’s done because he feels safe with you_.” 

Truth be told, he had to give it to Inoue; she had to do this all by herself when it was her turn to keep him, while he had his sisters for moral support. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t extort her a little about it. 

“You’re bringing the eclairs this time,” he said, before hanging up and heading over to go sit with his cat while he took a shit. 

“Huh, who knew,” Karin remarked to Yuzu, watching Ichigo brave the smell of the litter box while he spoke in gentle tones to his now-pooping cat. “Maybe he’d make a good dad after all.” 

  
  


__________

  
  


One day, Kennie trotted into his room rather pompously, something black and wiry wiggling in his mouth. 

“Yo,” Ichigo said lazily, already holding his hand out for some afternoon petting that Kennie liked with his naps. “Whatcha got there?” 

Kennie arrived, gracefully hopped onto the arm of his chair, hopped onto his bed, then dropped whatever was in his mouth onto Ichigo’s lap. 

It was a dead bird. 

_“NO! Get it off, what’s wrong with you?!”_

The entire house vibrated with his screams. 

  
  


__________

  
  


“ _Awww, he was bringing you his kills because he thinks you’re his family. He wants to teach you to fend for yourself. He does that to me, too, it’s so cute!_ ” 

Ichigo balanced his phone against his shoulder, glaring at Kennie while he washed his hands. “He better learn how to fend for _himself_ when I’m done with him.” 

Kennie purred. 

  
  


__________

  
  


Orihime never brought him on Sundays, the one day she didn’t have a shift. That didn’t stop Ichigo from getting his Kentaurus content, though, with Orihime sending him regular text and picture updates about their -- _her_ cat. Once, she even sent a video of her trying to do her morning yoga while Kennie attempted his damnedest to distract her by getting in the way a lot. He liked that video. Orihime and her weird tye-dye, galaxy pants that looked like someone had puked glitter all over it. Her hair tied up in a sweaty bun, face flushed with color and exhaustion from laughing and trying to shove Kennie out of the way. It was--he liked that video. He dragged the slider back to _00:00_ even before the video ended, grinning to himself like an idiot. 

“ _This, Kurosaki-kun, is what happens when a thirteen-pound cat tries to join you on your morning routine…”_

  
  


__________

  
  
  


On another day, Kennie made a rather spontaneous dive into a pile of leaves after he tracked the scurry of a lizard’s tail into the midst. Ichigo would have almost been proud of his sharp skill, had it not been for the group of protective mothers grabbing their children and staring at him in varying levels of horror and disapproval. 

“Sorry,” Ichigo mumbled, red-faced, while Karin tried not to chuckle beside him. “He’s better-behaved with his mother.”

The women shook their heads and carried on, while Ichigo shot a disapproving glare at his cat. “Kentaurus Rigil, I’m so going to revoke your rights to the yarn when we get home,” he muttered, not giving _two shits_ when Kennie scowled back in defiance. This was _seriously bad behavior_. 

“Say, Ichi-nii,” he heard Karin say.

“Hmm?” 

“You called Orihime-chan his mother,” she pointed out. 

“And?” Ichigo asked absently, trying to keep his hold on Kennie’s paw so he could pitch a stray bug off before there were casualties. 

“Does that make you his father?” 

He dropped Kennie’s paw, looking into the distance like he’d been hit with the freight train of an epiphany. 

__________

  
  


Eventually, they had to bring Chad and Uryu over, mainly due to the way word had spread about Orihime _fostering_ a cat and Ichigo _helping out_. 

“A cat is kind of unsophisticated, isn’t it?” Uryu asked, trailing in behind Chad and Orihime as they climbed up the stairs to Ichigo’s room. “I’d prefer a ferret.” 

“Cats are cute,” Chad said, with a shrug. Orihime bounded ahead of them, excited to see her boy (her _boys_ , if she was being entirely honest to herself) after a long day of work. She looked forward to this part of her day, mainly because her heart brimmed with love for Ichigo and how cute he could be without trying. When she approached the mouth of Ichigo’s room, however, she stopped. Her heart stopped, too. Her jaw was already well on its way to the floor. 

“Inoue?” Chad murmured, exchanging a confused look with Uryu. When they caught up to her, they too noticed what she was looking at. Ichigo, sprawled on his bed, mouth hanging slightly open as he slept soundly. One hand was by his side, but the other was resting comfortably on Kennie, who was taking a nap on his belly. 

“Oh my god,” Orihime whispered, her voice watery with tears as she clutched a hand above her heart. Chad had already ascended to seventh heaven at the cute image. Uryu scoffed, but took note of how close Ichigo seemed to be with the animal. He knew right away, who the ultimate parting of ways would hit the hardest. 

Ichigo, however, stirred at the commotion, stirring Kennie with him. He blinked his eyes open sleepily, just in time to spot Kennie hop off his belly and trot up to Orihime, giving her a happy and affectionate rub against her leg. 

“Traitor,” Ichigo muttered, but smiled slowly when Orihime scooped him up and began planting kisses on his face. Chad and Uryu watched curiously, settling on Ichigo’s bedroom floor as the overjoyed cat debated between which parent merited his attention, now that they both were here. 

“Can I pet him?” Chad asked, reaching forward with one hand already, but Kennie hung back, anxious about approaching the two strangers. Chad’s face faltered. Uryu’s nose was already starting to smear with the pinkening of allergies, so he was honestly relieved. 

“He’s just a bit shy,” Orihime explained gently, settling down on the floor across from Chad and Uryu. Ichigo dropped down beside her, but tossed a spool of yarn over at Chad. Kennie’s eyes followed the movement, but he held himself back, content with snuggling up to Orihime. 

“Here,” Ichigo explained, prodding the loose trail of thread with his finger. “He likes this, usually. Tug it towards yourself and he’ll give chase.” 

Chad followed his instructions, feeling overjoyed when Kennie eventually left his parents side and cautiously began stalking up to him. No animal could usually resist the Power of Chad, and hence it so happened that Kennie wasn’t impervious, either. Ichigo and Orihime looked on proudly, relieved that their brat was behaving himself for once and acting cute in the presence of company. Though, Uryu did observe that they both looked tired. Orihime had stray scratches on her face and Ichigo’s hair had not met with a comb in what looked like weeks. 

“I see parenthood is treating you well,” he remarked, through a sniff. The two stiffened, turning shades of red Uryu didn’t even know was possible. He grinned. 

Ichigo and Orihime refused to look at each other for the rest of the evening. 

__________

  
  


As with anything, this too had to come to an end. 

“Kurosaki-kun,” Orihime said grimly one night, right into the speaker. Her tone was so serious, he automatically got up from bed and groped around for his badge. If something had happened to Kentaurus, he could flash-step there, he decided. There were vets by her place, he knew there were. 

“What’s up?” He stood. “Is it bad?” 

“No,” she replied shakily. “It’s just--they found a family for Kennie.” 

His blood ran icy cold. He sat back down. “But--” he cut himself off, feeling an odd pang in his chest. Kennie was…

Well, he was theirs, wasn’t he?

“I had to do the paperwork last night,” she confessed softly, “They’re--they’re a good family. I met them. The parents moved to Mashiba last year, and they have two daughters. One moved out last year and the other one, well...she really wanted a cat, so the agency checked them out and they’re willing to do the transfer tomorrow.” 

“Oh.” 

The few moments of silence were far from awkward, but still pretty sad. Ichigo felt awful knots tie up all the way down to his stomach. 

“Inoue.”

“Hmm?”

He shifted back in his bed. “Will he be okay?” he asked, rubbing his eyebrows. “I mean, it’s a new place, right? And new people. He’s already gotten so used to us-- well, you. And I--um. I don’t know.” 

He was going to _miss_ him. And her, if he was being honest. If they no longer had to juggle Kennie between them, would Orihime still come over often? 

“He’ll be okay,” Orihime said, like she was trying to force all her resolve through a needle eye for the both of them. “We can still...visit. If we wanted to? Maybe--maybe together, even?” 

Ichigo nodded, even though she couldn’t see him. He sighed. “I’m sorry, Inoue.” 

“Me too.” She sniffed. He pretended not to hear her, fist curled in on itself as his own shoulders shook. 

“Kurosaki-kun,” she said softly. 

“Yeah?” 

“Thank you for being Kennie’s cat-dad.” Orihime blew her nose loudly, impervious to Ichigo’s ears. He didn’t mind. “It meant so much to me, what you did.” 

“It’s alright,” he said. “I--um. I--” Shit, why was this so hard to _say_? “I liked cat-dadding with you.” 

Orihime paused her sniffing. “Really?” 

“I wouldn’t mind if we did it again--for real.” A gush of color spread across his cheeks when he realized the implications of saying something like that. Oh well. It was out there now and Orihime was more than free to yell at him or call him a weirdo, or even gently let him down and let him know she liked him a lot, but not in _that_ way.

“I think--I think I’d like that? I mean, we definitely skipped a few steps there, but um,” she laughed, in a small snort, causing him to chuckle as well. “I’d like that a lot, actually.”

He settled back in bed, feeling both grief and relief in the same breath. Never in a million years had he pictured ever confessing his feelings to Orihime, but confessing it because of a cat? And her saying yes? He felt like Kennie had swiped him one too many times in the brain. 

“Oh, and Inoue?” he said, as she hummed in reply on the other end. “No more weird names.” 

“But--!” 

He grinned. 

  
  


__________

  
  


[epilogue]

“I don’t get why they’re acting like he _died_ ,” Karin muttered, watching her brother and his now-somewhat-girlfriend cuddling up under a blanket as they took turns to show each other pictures of their long-gone cat. “He’s literally two streets over from her apartment. They went to visit _yesterday_.” 

“Oh, shush, Karin,” Yuzu said, squealing in delight when Orihime nestled her head on Ichigo’s shoulder, making both of them blush and settle further back into each other. Ichigo’s arm hooked around her shoulder and he smiled against her temple. “ _So cute!_ ”

“He _scratched_ my handsome _face,_ ” Isshin continued wailing somewhere in the background, while the rest of them ignored him in favor of watching Ichigo and Orihime. 

  
  


[bonus]

_Rukia [middle finger emoji]: you should get a bunny next._

_Ichigo [boot][bug]: who is this? kennie changed all my contacts_

_Rukia [middle finger emoji]: fuck you._

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading, if you've read this far!


End file.
